Annandale: Dhumal threatens to take Army to court

The 121-bigha ground,surrounded by thick forests barely 4.5 km from Shimlas Ridge,has been under the Armys control since World War II.

It has now become a bone of contention between the state government and the Army amid an intensified campaign launched by Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association headed by Anurag Thakur,MP and Dhumals son,to restore it to the state authorities. For getting the Annandale ground back,the people of Shimla had formed a forum comprising 14 sports associations. The forum had launched an exhaustive signature campaign,which had received the support of 1.08 lakh people.

What had annoyed Dhumal was not the Armys counter-offensive against the signature campaign but the remarks that the state government was acting under the influence of so-called land mafia to put pressures on the Army to vacate the Annandale ground.

On Saturday,an Army release had claimed that the ground was of paramount strategic importance and being a green patch available in Shimla,attempts were being made take over the ground for building a sports stadium,which it claimed,will destroy the forest cover.

Reacting sharply to the statement,Dhumal on Sunday said that factually,Annandale ground belongs to Himachal and in under unlawful occupation of the Army. He alleged: The statement that the state government was losing forest cover and wanted to gain the same by taking over the Annandale area was astonishing. The fact is that the Annandale is under illegal occupation of the Army since the lease of the property had expired over 30 years ago.